Sovereignty
Faithfulness
Witness
Goodness
James 1:16–18
God does not change, which means we can participate in His redemptive plan for creation and trust Him with our future.
Can our community testify to God’s unchanging goodness with us doing life together and seeing us show Christ to others?
We are desperate for change in our lives, but often also fearful of it and longing for dependency, consistency, and stability.
This portion of James’s letter to believers around the world reminds us that amid our constant state of change, God is with us.
James begins this short passage with a warning: “Do not be deceived.”
James is speaking to believers, but he is aware that our proclivity for self-deception is not entirely abolished in our new life.
In the face of trials and temptations, James cautions believers against two problems:
- Believing that God has no right to expose his children to trials (for their growth and edification)
- Believing that God is the source of our temptations to sin.
James later emphasizes the goodness of God in His faithfulness to us in trials and in His giving of good gifts, but here he makes clear that while God does not prevent us from experiencing trials, He is not cruel or inconsistent.
Regarding misbelief, James gives this clear affirmation in verse 17: everything good comes from God, who does not change.
Verse 18 finishes the passage with a word about what God’s unchangingness means for us.